Yeah you heard me right, ponies. I'll get on to that later. I was originally hoping to get Nations to the table and I almost did, however Graham had also brought Rex back from the previous week and it was one that I wanted to try also. Equal votes for each game, but everyone else was unable to step forward and make a definitive decision so in comes me to save the day! As I have Portsmouth On Board this week as well, I figured I could get it in that night so it wouldn't be the end of the world to try Rex instead - maybe it's because we only just played Twilight Imperium 3 on Sunday and I was still in the space mood. . .

Rex is based in the same universe and is a reprint of an old game called Dune. The theme is mainly tacked on, you could substitute it with something else, but it is cool to have alien races with different abilities that you can use and credit to Fantasy Flight, this game looks gorgeous! Lots of nice pieces, quality artwork, lots of colour, everything just looks really sci-fi and high quality, but are we surprised when FF are involved?

"Rex"

The game is relatively simple though. You bid on strategy cards which help in combat to begin with, then deploy and move your troops around, then resolve combats. That's the main gist of what goes on. You are aiming to control certain spots on the board that will enable you to win the game. But where this game pulls you in is the art of betrayal that features in the game. You can try to win by yourself, but that tends to be quite a difficult thing to do, so at certain stages you are allowed to form and break alliances with other players. But on top of that you each start with a card that has a specific objective on it with a ranking and if you can complete that task while part of a winning alliance, if your rank is higher than your teammate, then you effectively betray them and win the game for yourself!

Now imagine that you've been through the whole game, suffered combat losses, treachery in your leaders and hardship galore, but finally pull of a victory only to have your buddy stab you in the back. Now as fun and thematic as that is, can you imagine a more obvious table flipping moment? "Yay, we all won. . . except you!"

"Last Night On Earth"

This is one evil game and you can get messed around a lot, but that's part of the theme and you have to accept that going in. I had an alliance with Graham for the whole game, not thinking for one second that our alliance was completely legit, but going with it anyway. But on the last turn I was able to convince Jacob that his partner was no longer useful, broke my alliance and then formed a new one with him to win the game. Now he could have stabbed me in the back with his Betrayal card, but after stitching up his partner, we shook hands and shared the victory! That was unexpected as I expected to lose with a moral victory - but should I still trust him in the next game?

"Saboteur"

It was a good laugh so will look forward to a subsequent play. It looks nice, has a lot of player interaction and political discussion and because of the cool dials and cards you use for combat, there's very little luck in this game. A tiny bit for what cards you win and some for choosing your leader and hoping he's not a traitor, but surprising still very little for a quintessential Ameritrash game. But be prepared to get yourself screwed over ripe royally.

Across from us Last Night On Earth was being dominated by the hero side who had a fascination with the Gun Shop - well who wouldn't in real life let alone a zombie apocalypse? What slightly scared me was that two new members were playing a card game of My Little Pony. . . . . now. . . . . wait for it. . . . . need a moment. . . . . WHAT? I felt legitimately scared when I saw this game, not only refusing to believe that such a game would exist, but that it would be being played in front of me right now by adults! Obviously this is before I even know what the game is about, but again, can you blame me for such a reaction? I would bet that much as I love my future girlfriend to enjoy some board games with me, if My Little Pony was part of the deal, I'd have to consider getting out of Dodge.

"My Little Pony"

We started quite late and didn't have much time for fillers that night, though some were able to get a quick session of Saboteur over and done with. Hopefully more games to show you next week and I think next Monday I'll either bring Nations again or I might bring Empires of the Void, keeping to the space theme. ﻿